Sheriff hands out awards to deputies

Investigators who helped put "The Candy Man" out of business, detectives who went across the country to find an abducted child and corrections officers who prevented a planned murder inside the jail were among the many honored Thursday by the Salt Lake County Sheriff's Office.

Sheriff Jim Winder Thursday passed out awards during the department's annual ceremony. Among those honored were detectives Corbett Ford, Dan Bartlett and April Morse who served a search warrant in May of 2007 at the office of Dr. Warren Stack.

Stack, known on the street as "The Candy Man," was accused of "prescribing" Oxycontin and other powerful painkillers to anyone who walked into his office. Investigators estimate he was seeing as many as 80 patients a day.

Stack was eventually indicted federally. Prosecutors say he can be linked to at least five overdose deaths. The detectives received the Sheriff's Star for their efforts.

Capt. Chris Bertram, Lt. Steve Anjewierden and Lt. Debbie Herreraparkin were also awarded the Sheriff's Star for recovering a 1-year-old boy abducted by his non-custodial father. The father, who investigators learned had been living a double life, had actually been on the run from authorities in other states for 12 to 15 years.

In February of 2007 he took his 1-year-old son from Utah and fled to Rhode Island. But investigators had a hard time tracking him because of the numerous false identifications he used. It was the discovery of a single fingerprint that led investigators to Rhode Island where an arrest was made and the baby safely recovered.

Several officers were honored Thursday for their work in preventing violence within the Salt Lake County Jail.

Officer David Kilgrow received the Sheriff's Star for stopping a possible escape attempt by a "high security prisoner." Kilgrow found the prisoner had a detailed map of the entire prison, contraband and a fishing line.

Also receiving Sheriff's Stars were Sgt. Jason Jones and deputy Jeremy Sharp. The two learned of a plot to smuggle a weapon inside the jail to be used to kill a correctional officer during the escape of an inmate, according to the sheriff's office. Due to their investigation, six employees were either terminated or resigned and now face criminal prosecution.

Deputy Chad Jacobsen was given the Correctional Officer of the Year award for his efforts in preventing another possible attack inside the jail. Jacobsen discovered a shank made out of a hairbrush that was sharpened at the end. The shank was hidden in a prisoner's mattress.

One of the most unique incidents of the year came courtesy of deputy Deirdre Lindsey, who was called upon to help with a suspected DUI driver who didn't speak English. Lindsey, who is fluent in Spanish, was able to give the driver a field sobriety test over the phone and arrest him.